Cat spikes around garden

[VividDenimTiger]

So, we live in house with a small garden. The neighbours cats have been shitting in our garden every day for literally 5 years. We have tried EVERYTHING to deter them- sensors, water sprays, planting cat deterrent plants, lion poo, spraying stuff. You name it, we have tried it.

Our garden stinks of cat shit all the time. The neighbours who own the cats- sit outside in their garden all the time enjoying life because their cats don’t shit at home.

It’s broken me - we can’t actually use our garden at all at the moment as it’s terrible- they shit in the beds, dig up our plants and spray against the shed.

So we have put up cat spikes to try and deter them as a last resort. I hate them and they look awful but I am hoping it might deter them. Neighbour has already made it clear how unreasonable we are - they are on our side of the fence so no boundary issues. I am trying not to fall out with them but we have asked them many times to try and contain their cats- they have 4.

so AIBU? I am literally at the end of my tether. My kids can’t play in the garden as there is constant shit. It’s stressing me out so much - we just want to use our own garden so this is honestly last resort. I am really upset by it all.

I used to have three cats and had litter trays indoors. I didn't want a cat flap so they only went out when I let them out. If they needed to use the litter tray when they were outside they would come in and use it and go out again. They preffered the dry litter tray to damp grass or borders.

Well, hedgehogs are a native species and protected under the Wildlife and Countryside Act. Cats are neither. (Except for Scottish Wildcats obviously).

It’s legal under most circumstances to humanely destroy invasive species such as grey squirrels, signal crayfish, Japanese knotweed, and domestic cats.

My neighbour has 'trained' the cats who have adopted me.
She really doesn't like them climbing into her garden, even though she likes cats, & why should she? She shooed them away & they have learned not to go in people's gardens, & find common land. :-)

We had problems with cats in our garden. One even managed to sneak a paw into a breeding cage and rip apart our newborn baby guinea pig! In front of my kids!!
like you the owners did nothing.
I ended up sitting in the garden for 3 days straight with a hose and every single time a cat paw came over the fence, they got hosed down and utterly soaked. On the 3rd day I filled a super soaker with lemon scented non toxic body spray and soaked them in water and lemon scent. Eventually I found out I had upset the cats owner as now their cat was coming home dripping and stinking out their house. Told the owner to keep their cats to themselves, otherwise it would get worse, and they ended up keeping their damn cat inside!

Where is the common land though?
Where children play?
Where other people spend their Saturdays trying to pick up litter and cat mess to keep the area nice for others?

Also plastic pipes on tops of yr fences so they can't jump into them and into yr garden. Have a google..very effective apparently..cat lover here who's own cat poops in my garden!!

You're a silly billy. Stop making things up for attention 😂

@VividDenimTiger you need to cat proof your garden , it keeps cats out as well as keeping them in . Have a look at Protect a Pet or the roller system .

@Dragonflyspeeding
Areas with trees which are fenced off from us residents, chill out!
The cats think it's their personal mini jungle..

Our opposite neighbours have 10 cats, that all come and shit in my veg patch, the neighbours have even put up a sign saying caution cats crossing! Yes to take a shit in my garden! I have two dogs that have made friends with the cats ( N.B Irish setters are useless😂🤣😂) so this year i have grassed over my veg patch. I am really upset by this as i enjoyed growing veg, even though we didn’t eat it because of the cat shit! But grassing over has stopped it.

Currently our cats do roam in the garden (though very rarely go any further). That said we ALWAYS every day will pick up any cat poop in the garden and tbh when we move we are considering them becoming more indoor cats (with safe access catio)

I grew up with the issue and have a dad who's always hated cats doing their business in their garden so I get it's frustrating and also there are the risk of harm to the cats and/or wildlife

You are a real red flag. You want to poison cats?? Clearly you're a weirdo. And yes, I mean that in a judgemental way.

Low quality trolling 'FernandoSor'🙄

Same. I have two cats but they don't stray very far. My garden backs onto to wasteland so they use that or their litter trays for the loo. If I thought that they were causing this much distress to my neighbour, or of course in dange, they would become housecats.

Fair enough OP, and I say that as a cat owner (who uses a litter box). Several neighbours have put spikes up though and generally the cats find ways to get over them. One neighbour resorted to barbed wire, I cringe when I see the cats slithering under / over it but they still manage.

I would get a small dog or even borrow one now and again.

Cat owner..

id pick it up and put it in their owners garden.

You could also put chili flakes down where they poo or consider one of those things that makes the horrible noise cats dont like.

Your neighbours are unreasonable to know their cats are doing this and not help with a deterrent

We have a terrible rat problem here as we back onto a farm but I never have a single rat in my house because my cats murder them the second they pop their heads up.
My black ex feral dumped one on the doorstep the other day that was MASSIVE. I didnt know they came in that size.
Apparently a couple of years before I moved in here there was a serious rat infestation and the council pest control unit found hundreds of rat tunnels and nests under all our homes and the rats worked their way up the walls and were popping up in bedrooms under the floors.
Even after poison was put down the problem kept recurring so the neighbours got cats and its under control now.

I don’t know if it’s been mentioned, I haven’t read the whole post . I also tried everything. The only thing that consistently works is male urine.

I've just cleared our garden to put in a patio. Unfortunately cats seem to think this is now a giant toilet. My old cat used to delicately bury its poo. My new cat only has three legs and doesn't know how to bury it either. However... The poo in the cleared space isn't hers! I'm getting random cats pooing in my garden! I'm not sure why this seems to be so much more of a problem now.

I think it’s fair enough, cats have the rights to roam but property owners have the right to protect their property from roaming cats surely.

Otherwise where does it end? Should you have to leave the windows open so they get first go at dinner too?

I’m sure the neighbours aren’t happy as you are changing the status quo to their detriment. They haven’t cared about your detriment for years though so I’d take a leaf out of their book and develop a thicker skin about it all. If they approach I’d make sympathetic noises and say things like “I’m sure they will adjust to the new regime quickly” and “would you like take some dirt from the flowerbed as it might help them establish their ow n cat poo area”

Good for you. It's bizarre how arsey cat owners get when they have to deal with their own pets turds.

Twice a week?!? Really, so they can't use their own garden's and have to play cat shit hopscotch FIVE days a week because of your selfish entitlement. Really. Unbelievable

Can’t believe some suggested the neighbour comes round twice a week to clean up. They should be there every single day!
I have a cat. If she did this and wouldn’t stop she’d become a house cat. If I found out she’d pooed in someone’s garden I’d be round to clear it up straight away.
you deffo should be flinging it over their fence. I know some folk hate cats but the vermin we would have without them would be horrid.

I’m a cat owner and YANBU at all!!!!